By Emmanuel Gamson
Sekondi (W/R), June 4, GNA – Some local service delivery stakeholders in the Western Region have been sensitised on the USAID/Ghana Performance Accountability Activity (PAA), an initiative meant to improve upon public service delivery in the country.
The PAA is a five-year project being funded by USAID and implemented by Democracy International in collaboration with the Government of Ghana partners and local Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) across 70 districts in 10 regions.
The initiative sought to support local organisations, women and youth groups, and traditional and religious leaders to advocate improved critical public service delivery in their respective areas.
It is also aimed at enhancing the responsiveness of service providers to citizens’ demands for quality essential services, particularly in basic education, health, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), agriculture and fisheries.
In the Western Region, the PAA is implemented by the Rural Aid Alliance Foundation (RAAF) across 30 communities in six districts; Shama, Wassa East, Ahanta West, Jomoro, Nzema East and Wassa Amenfi East.
Representatives from the Regional Coordinating Council, Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs), CSOs, community-based and non-governmental organisations, traditional and religious leaders, youth groups and state agencies among other stakeholders attended the regional sensitisation workshop, held at Sekondi.
The engagement was to introduce the PAA to participants and encourage their participation and buy-in to its key activities which include identifying opportunities, anticipating potential barriers, and exploring strategies to overcome those challenges to ensure the initiative’s long-term sustainability.
Mrs Linda Ofori-Kwafo, the PAA Deputy Chief of Party, speaking at the opening of the workshop, said the project’s core objectives were to enhance the capacity of the Government partners, including sector agencies, district assemblies, CSOs, and community-based organisations to implement behaviour-led capacity building and institutional strengthening interventions for improved service delivery.
She said: “PAA’s behaviour-led approach targets the root causes of issues, that is, the values, attitudes, motivations, and social identities of both service providers and citizens receiving local public services.
“Embracing Ghanaian core values of respect, solidarity, and collectivism, the PAA leverages traditional participative structures and authority systems that resonate deeply with the cultural context of governance.”
Mr Kenneth Kpodo, the Programme Lead at RAAF, said reports indicated that there were some gaps in citizens’ participation in local governance, including weak citizens’ access and awareness of the functions of the assemblies.
He said they would work to foster a culture of accountability, transparency and collaboration to drive quality and effective service delivery in their implementing areas.
Mr Frederick Agyemang, the Western Regional Co-ordinating Director, commended the implementers of the PAA and said it constituted a paradigm of transparency, accountability, and good governance across the various sectors of the economy.
GNA